Ariadne
Ariadne, commonly shortened to just 'Ari', serves as the protagonist and main playable character of Route A, and part of Route B, in Esper. She is a nomadic young woman who survived in the ruins of Lemuria by living a mostly-solitary lifestyle -- out of sight from the rogue Automata. In the year 1311, Ariadne catches wind that the Terminal Node, a device that can supposedly return the city and the Automata to human control, is located somewhere in District 7, and she sets out to retrieve it. The events of Esper follow her journey to retrieve the Terminal Node and then make her way to the city's center, where she can use it to restore order to Lemuria. Biography Before the Storm (spoilers!) Ages ago, just a few years after The Composer created The Storm, a small team of Espers led by Caius was sent to the Heart of the World to destroy the Composer and reunite Humans and the Automata back into the Progenitors. However, without only fractions of their Progenitor powers at hand they were powerless to even reach it, and their mission ended in disaster: Adreus was corrupted and turned traitor, Beatrice and Djhin were both killed, and Eldrich was captured and assimilated into the Composer. Only Caius remained, and following his initiative Lemuria was built to act as a safe haven while he continued his search for a way to destroy The Composer once and for all. However, unbeknownst to everyone The Composer had come up with a plan for just such a contingency. Using the corpse of Beatrice, it created its own Esper: an Automata called Ariadne. After stowing away on Lemuria, she wiped herself of her memories and blended into society as a sleeper agent. Whenever the Lemurians came close to stopping The Composer, she would intervene, destroy all progress and kill anyone involved; with her task complete she would once again clear her memories and assume a new identity, with a new background and false memories, until she was needed again. In-between her attacks she would also subtly manipulate the people of Lemuria, creating a number of contingencies that she could fall back on it anything went awry. Life on Lemuria Ariadne assumed many different identities over the course of her mission. A few are referenced by other characters and in background details. What's more, every major character has been influenced by a previous version of herself in some way, usually as part of a contingency that she could utilize to further her mission: * Little is known of Ariadne original incarnation, though according to Caius she went by a different name Feronia, and was verysimilar to Beatrice -- both in terms of appearance and personality. She was also very blunt in her role as a sleeper agent and was nearly caught and destroyed by the Automata at some point. Feronia remained active from year 0 (Lemuria's completion) to 144. * Ariadne's second incarnation, Lydia, was notable for being extremely introverted and reclusive (which is speculated to be an overcompensation from Feronia's blunt attitude). This version relied on long-term sabotage and assassination, and was reported by Caius as being the most-difficult incarnation to track. Lydia remained active from year 144 to 431. * Ariadne's third incarnation, Sarah, contrasted Lydia heavily by being extremely charismatic and outgoing. It was this incarnation that set the groundwork for many of her current contingencies, and was responsible for turning much of Lemuria's population against Caius through heavy propaganda. Sarah remained active from year 431 to 570. * Ariadne's fourth incarnation, Eveline, was responsible for shutting down most of Lemuria's power and for disconnecting most of the Automata from the Core Network: Two actions that ultimately led to the current state of the city and its population. However, something apparently went wrong and she was forced to restart prematurely. Eveline remained active from year 599. * Ariadne's fifth incarnation, Persephone, set most of the current incarnation's plan into motion: She was the one who built the Terminal Node as a means of seizing control of the remaining Automata away from Caius. She also spread rumors of her Terminal Node throughout the human settlements, in the event she ever lose it. This was the incarnation that Caius came the closest to stopping, as he successfully ambushed her and forced her to reset her timeline and start over prematurely. Caius then took her Terminal Node and made copies of it, regaining some limited control over the rogue Automata. Persephone remained active from the year 599 to 712. * Finally, the current incarnation, Ariadne is the one the player assumes control of. After being critically wounded and forced to reset her timeline under a new identity, Persephone takes on the role of Ariadne, a nomadic young woman. With the Automata back under Caius' control, she is forced to stay low and plan her moves carefully. She spends centuries manipulating the various settlements to search for her lost Terminal Node and to make sure there would be a healthy supply of people sympathetic to her cause. Eventually the pieces all started to fall in place, and she caught wind that the Terminal Node is somewhere in District 7. She makes her way there, gathering a team to fight along-side her: The game's events begin right as she breaks into the Safe House built to protect a copy of her Terminal Node. In-Game Profile Description A rebellious and free-spirited young woman on whom the fate of mankind may rest. Ariadne bears a mysterious power that lets her control small fractions of time, travelling back a few second to fix mistakes. After retrieving the Terminal Node, she begins her journey to Lemuria's center with the help of Markov. The one who takes the most naps. Statistics Ariadne's Class is determined by the player at the start of New Game, and is carried over to New Game+. Her unique trait is Phase Shift, which grants her access to her characteristic time-controlling abilities (with Chrono Shift being automatically unlocked at the start of the game). She is a well-rounded character with good overall stat bonuses, with preferences towards health, damage, and agility. Category:Characters